No excuses, President Obama.
“Use that power for something larger than yourself.” - President Barack Obama, in an address to Morehouse College graduates.
I wish that he could hear himself and realize he hasn’t fulfilled this pledge.
Rhetoric versus action. I voted for the President for his first term because I thought he would be a catalyst for genuine change in our federal system of government. I believed he would defend the poor, fight for the minority’s basic rights, uphold fairness in our judicial system and uplift America’s image as a beacon for the world to follow. I was summarily and exponentially disappointed as his term came to a close.
Instead, he and his administration have not protected our American middle class, nor our poor, nor even our fundamental, constitutionally guaranteed rights as citizens. I don’t make such a scathing statement lightly and I really wish I didn’t have to make it in the first place.
But the fact remains that President Obama has perpetually enrolled our honorable military service members in wars, public and semi-undisclosed, for the same shady reasons as his predecessor. He has escalated the use of unmanned drones in places like Yemen and Pakistan so as to accentuate the empirical status of America while attempting to displace individual human culpability. He hasn’t closed down the Guantanamo Bay and other prisons worldwide which hold hundreds without charge and still others who have been CLEARED of any charges. Torture and other cruel and unusual forms of punishment remain rampant in these shameful prisons.
To bring insult to injury, President Obama has said he would protect the middle class, the working poor and the poor while literally selling them off at bargain prices to private interests, the one percent, corporate America. He has half-heartedly signed executive orders to attempt the prevention of national tragedies like what happened at Sandy Hook elementary due to gun violence while failing to enforce simple background checks for all gun sales. Of course, to be fair, the NRA has used its seemingly unyielding power to stop such executive actions from taking place. However, it is his use of the bully pulpit, his presidential endorsement and sway, which is supported by the majority of Americans on this issue, that will move legislation convincingly through a reluctant, partisan Congress.
I know President Obama is no miracle maker. I know he has flaws and limitations as many human beings. Yet, I also know what he is capable of, how he brings people together and how he shapes public opinion. His charisma and his drive are public lore, while his strategic political plotting and backroom deals are infamous. If he truly believes a politician is a public SERVANT, then he should heed his own advice and fight for the greater good of our country’s future. He cannot relent to stubborn adversaries nor give up the good fight if its not politically feasible. Though I didn’t vote for him to continue his second term of the Presidency, I do expect him to thoroughly fulfill his obligations as the nation’s Excutive and go beyond that: extraordinary times call for extreme measures.
"Things do not change; we change." - Henry David Thoreau po.st/5pwTst via @po_st
— Johnny Mendoza Govea (@JohnnyInJapan) May 21, 2013
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